The Mass Spectrometer Facility at Cornell under the Biotechnology Resource Program of the National Institutes of Health is providing mass spectrometry service to a variety of academic research groups in the biomedical area, and is generating collaborative efforts between the senior research associate and workers in such diverse fields as astronomy, plant pathology, and veterinary medicine. The service includes low resolution spectra (with the capability of gas chromatographic sample introduction and chemical ionization), computer analysis of data from GC-MS multiple analyses (including computer evaluation of fragmentation patterns), and high resolution determination of elemental composition (including computer analysis and presentation). Fundamental advances in the automation of mass spectral data handling are being developed and will be applied in the service operation.